Pyrrhic Victory
by BurgerKingDrive-By
Summary: After a month since the zombie outbreak, and with their supplies running low, Takashi Komuro leads his fellow survivors across Japan in search of a safe zone. Unfortunately, things are about to get more complicated than they had expected. With anarchy and death running wild in the streets, will our ragtag group survive? WARNING: VIOLENCE, ADULT SITUATIONS & DIALOGUE.
1. 30 Days Later

Grey clouds loomed overhead, while thunder rolled in the distance, as a steady drizzle fell on the city below. Takashi walked down the empty street alongside his fellow survivors: Saya, Saeko, Rei, Kohta and their senseis Kyoko and Shizuka. The group had their weapons fully drawn and ready to shoot at the sight of _them, _in what used to be a busy commercial district of a nearby city. Only now, it was filled with rows of desolate shops, their modern glass architecture no longer gleaming and their electric billboards no longer working.

"Keep your eyes open, and don't let your guard down," Takashi cautioned the group, his finger wrapped closely on the trigger of his gun.

"Right," responded the group in unison, while scanning the streets and buildings for any sudden movements that may signaled they had company. It had been a month since the world went to hell due to the zombie outbreak. Technically, they still didn't know the origins of the disease―whether it was a naturally occurring pandemic, or a bio weapon released on an unsuspecting public that soon spread across the globe. Regardless of how it came to be, or who was responsible for it, the group remained committed to surviving the ordeal.

"According to the map, we're about 25 miles from Shinkawa," remarked Saya, glancing at the area while holding the map on one hand and her umbrella on the other.

The rain began to increase in intensity, the clouds growing more furious by the minute.

"Komuro-kun, shouldn't we seek shelter? This storm is coming down hard," said Shizuka-sensei, her eyes filled with concern.

"You're right, sensei. Everyone, see that building? Let's wait out the storm in there," said Takashi, pointing to a café shop sitting at a street corner.

The group nodded and they made their way to the building. Once inside, the rain began to pour down heavily, as thunder and lightning illuminated the dark sky. The shop's interior was built in the style of an English hunting lodge, complete with a fireplace and bear hunting trophy hanging over it, wooden panels covering the walls, and a large wagon wheel chandelier with oil lamps hanging over the room. What used to be a trendy spot for people to hang out and buy their coffee, was now reduced to a gloomy shop with a couple of broken chairs and espresso machines.

Takashi grabbed one of the many leg chairs that were scattered around the floor, "Let's start a fire and get ourselves warm first."

The group agreed and quickly gathered the broken chairs and started tossing them into a pile to be used as firewood. Saya and Kyoko-sensei went to the kitchen to search for any remaining food. Unfortunately, they only found pots and pans.

"Well, at least we have running water," said Saya, letting the faucet water run.

"But there's no gas," remarked sensei, turning on the knobs of the stove.

"Can't have everything we want," Saya sighed. "We'll just have to improvise like we always do."

They cleaned the pots and pans with soap dish they found in the kitchen and rinsed them with tap water. Saya then filled up a 12qt. pot full of water, and with sensei's help, they carried it back to the fireplace where Takashi had started a fire. When the water was brought to a boil, Takashi took out a packet of instant ramen from his backpack.

"All right, let's pour the noodles in," he said enthusiastically.

The group followed suit, opened their packets, and dump the contents into the boiling pot. Shizuka-sensei assumed cooking duties and stirred the noodles, as the aroma filled the room. Huddled closely to the fireplace, the survivors eagerly awaited their meal.

In the meantime, they went to the kitchen and washed their metal bowls and chopsticks. It was a nice welcome to finally clean them in soap and running water after all this month of traveling through different cities.

"Meal's ready!" sensei cheerfully exclaimed.

The group quickly, but orderly made their way back to the fireplace and formed a line in front of sensei. She began to distribute the noodles to each member of the group. When everyone's food bowl was filled, sensei took what was left for herself. Fortunately, there was enough for everyone to eat. They loudly slurped their meal, savoring each precious noodle.

"I wish this had some flavor. Plain ramen is the worst!" Rei declared. "I can't wait for this to be finally over and go back to eating real food."

"You complain too much," Saeko said, without glancing at Rei, while she drank her broth. "Any food is better than no food. We have much to be thankful."

"And you're too calm!" snapped Rei. "You think your precious _bushido _is gonna save you from hunger or _them_?"

"I never said it would, but it does provide a moral framework for how to conduct one's self in the face of adversity."

"Oh, just shove it up―"

"That's enough, Rei!" Takashi protested. "Please, just let us eat in peace."

"You're always taking her side," she glared at him.

"No, I don't."

'Yes, you do!"

"Rei, please. There's no need to be so combative with your friends. Especially, at a time like this," Shizuka-sensei pleaded with her.

"I just want things to go back to normal."

"We all do, but it may take longer than expected. Or worse, it may never happen," Saya said.

"Things will return back to normal, you'll see," responded Rei, growing agitated. "They can't stay like this forever. Even when this country got nuked or had huge earthquakes, things always went back to normal."

"But this time is different," interjected Kohta. "We're not fighting a war or experiencing a natural disaster, we're fighting an invisible enemy that turns people into walking corpses." The group quickly turned their focus to him.

"We don't even know how this happened," he continued, "or when it'll be over. But what we do know is we have to make the best of it and figure out how to survive in this new world."

"NO! I don't wanna live in this new world," Rei started to cry. "I hate it! I hate running from _them! _And I hate not having clean clothes to wear, a hot bath to take, and whatever food I want to eat at any time."

Kyoko-sensei put her arm around her shoulder, but Rei pushed it away, "So all of you better hope this ends soon because I'm not living like this forever." She stormed off to a corner in the room.

"Don't mind her," said Kyoko-sensei. "She's just stressed out, that's all. These things do take a toll on your mind."

"She's always been a spoiled brat," remarked Saeko coldly.

"Just let her cool off," Takashi looked at Saeko. "She wasn't always like this."

"Hmph!" she scoffed, without glancing at Takashi.

The group continued eating their meal in silent. Afterwards, they washed their bowls and chopsticks and left them out to dry on the kitchen counter.

"Supply check," called Takashi to the group.

Kohta brought his backpack to the only table that wasn't broken and placed all his supplies on it: ammo, a couple of water bottles, a few packets of instant ramen, and some toilet paper. The rest of the group ― including Rei ― followed suit.

"This doesn't look good," whispered Saya to Takashi. He nodded.

"Based on this count, we need to ration our supplies even further. Otherwise, we'll run out before we reach our next stop," Takashi warned the group. "From now on, we'll eat smaller portions."

"But for how long must we ration our supplies?" asked Kyoko-sensei.

"An extra four days. At the rate we're walking, we'll reach Shinkawa in about two days," answered Takashi. "And that's _if_ we don't run into some detours."

"We already eat only two meals a day, is cutting it down to smaller portions really going to help us?" questioned Shizuka-sensei.

"We don't have much of a choice, sensei. We have to make the best with what we have. And right now, this is it," he pointed at the supplies on the table. "Hopefully, tomorrow we can move out and find some supplies."

The group took back their stuff and put them inside their backpacks. Eventually, night came and the survivors took out their sleeping bags and placed them near the fireplace. After an exhausting day, they went to sleep with the hope things would improve the next day, while the storm continued to rage on throughout the night.

* * *

Takashi leaned on the shop's doorway as he looked outside at the heavy rainfall. It had been more than four hours since the group had woken up the following morning, and the storm showed no signs of diminishing.

"Still going strong, huh?" said Kohta, walking up next to him.

"Yeah, I don't know how long we'll be here if this keeps up," replied Takashi.

"I just hope it doesn't last for the entire week," Kohta said, looking concern. "We can't find any supplies in the stores nearby, and this rain won't help us reach Shinkawa before we run out of them."

"I know. Let's just sit tight and wait for this storm to pass."

"And if it doesn't, then what?"

"We'll push forward to Shinkawa no matter what," Takashi said, with fierce determination. He turned to Kohta and grinned, "Don't give up, man. At least, we were able to fill up our canteens with fresh water," he pointed at the rain.

Kohta chuckled, "I guess, that's the silver lining in all of this."

They both laughed as the rain continued to pour down.

The next day, the group was more fortunate as the rain stopped. The sky was still partly cloudy, but that was good enough for them to embark on their journey. The group made its way to their next stop, finding some supplies along the way to keep them going until they reached their destination. With Saya's skillful guidance, they were able to avoid dangerous roads that could become ambush traps by _them_. Despite the detours, they managed to make up for lost time. After hours of walking, they finally reached Shinkawa. The group walked along a riverbank bike path. Grey clouds still loomed overhead.

"It should be right over this hill," said Saya, pointing at it while consulting her map.

"Let's go then!" Takashi exclaimed, sprinting towards the hill, with the group following him closely behind.

When they reached the top, Takashi and his group looked out into the area below.

"It's here! We finally made it!" he exclaimed with a beaming smile.

Less than a few hundred feet away from them, lay a white warehouse complex the size of a football stadium. Prominently displayed on the building, in its calligraphy font and famous logo, was the company's name:

_ Amazon. co. jp_


	2. Fulfilled

The group waded through a field of pampas grass, their guns fully-drawn, on high-alert for any signs of trouble and ready to terminate such threat if it presented itself, as they approached the back parking lot of the building. In the distance, a murder of crows circled above, screeching nonstop. Saya shudder.

"What's wrong?" Saeko asked.

"Nothing. I just hate the way they sound, that's all," she said, without glancing at her.

As they darted across the parking lot, they could see a couple of parked cars but no Amazon semi-trailers anywhere in the vicinity. They reached one of the loading docks and immediately tried to pry open one of the doors with a crowbar, but to no avail.

"Let's try the front, it'll be easier to open than these," said Saya.

"All right, let's go," Takashi said, leading the group.

When they finally reached the main entrance, Kohta used the same crowbar and managed to pry open the door. Takashi went in first, while Kohta was right behind him, pointing his MAC-10 into the dark office. Takashi shone his flashlight throughout the room, while holding his gun with the other hand. He signaled the group in and they quickly went inside, while Saya ran towards the alarm box that was across the room. She tried to cut off the wires to deactivate it, but noticed something wasn't right.

"That's strange," she said with a puzzled expression.

"What's wrong?" asked Takashi.

"The alarm is off and isn't running on the backup power."

"So, is it still a problem?" Kohta inquired, looking over his shoulder while he continued to point his gun into the dark room.

"We have to find the power disconnect box. It should be inside the warehouse floor," Saya inform them, "But before we go," she cut off the alarm wires with her pliers. "There. This shouldn't be a problem anymore."

"Ok, let's go find it," Takashi nodded.

The group left the office and slowly made their way across a dark hallway, their flashlight beams illuminating the eerie corridor. Along the way, they encountered signs directing them to the warehouse area. The walls were covered with posters instructing the employees on proper safety protocols, motivating slogans, and pictures of the people who had been awarded the honor of being Employee of the Month. The group looked at their happy faces, their beaming smiles full of pride, without knowing how many of them managed to escape to safety or if they were even still alive after the disaster struck. They passed by an empty lunchroom, which caught Rei's curiosity, prompting her to peered through the small window door. Inside, she could see microwave ovens, coffee makers, vending machines, and some lunch boxes, that were left forever frozen in time to mark that faithful day. They reached the end of the hallway to where a pair of aluminum swing doors stood. Takashi pushed through them, with Kohta and the rest of the group trailing behind him, as they walked inside to the warehouse floor.

"Takashi, over there," whispered Kohta, illuminating the power disconnect box with his gun-mounted flashlight.

"Yeah, I got it," he said, making his way towards it. He opened the box and pushed the switch to turn the power on, and within seconds, the entire warehouse was flooded with light.

"Wow," the group said, standing awe-struck and looking at row after row of bright-yellow shelves that lined up across the distance, each one with bins that held a variety of items. In the center of the area, dozens of orange-colored robots that looked like Roomba vacuum cleaners, but were larger in size, sat there quietly. Based on its size, the building looked more like an airplane hangar that could house a fleet of Airbus A380s than a warehouse. But then again, this was an Amazon warehouse―everything was bigger.

"Let's split up and go find supplies. Remember, get nonperishable food and water and anything else we may need for our trip. Get as much as you can carry," Takashi ordered. "And watch out for any zombies, since we haven't cleared this place."

"Right," they answered, as they darted off in different directions.

Saeko went into an aisle and started scanning the shelves for the essential items Takashi had told them to find. She spotted a familiar looking box containing something the majority of the group desperately needed―tampons. Without any hesitation, she grabbed all the boxes from the shelf bin, stuffed them into her backpack, and continued on with her search. In the next shelf, she quickly found some protein bars and she grabbed those, as well.

Two aisles away from her, Saya was filling her backpack full of canned chicken and vegetable soup. No longer would the group have to eat plain instant ramen, but instead, they would feast on a more nutritious and delicious meal. And for once, Rei would finally shut up and let them all eat in peace.

At the other end of the building, while she rummaged through the bins, Kyoko-sensei found an expensive moisturizing cream. _Just because the world has gone up in flames, doesn't mean I should look like an old hag, _she thought, throwing a couple of them into her bag and moving on to the next shelf.

While that was happening, at the opposite end, Shizuka-sensei found a couple of bottles of sake and some sweets, much to her delighted surprise. _ I can't wait to try this! It's been so long since I had a drink. Oh, how I missed these things, _she smiled and giggled ecstatically. 

Sitting at the top of the shelf, Rei found the object of her desire: A pack of 4-ply toilet paper. She glinted with happiness, as she reached for it and snatched it. Once she held it in her hands, she gazed lovingly at her prize. The gift of a clean ass would no longer be a distant memory of the Old World but a new reality in the New One.

Meanwhile, Kohta was going from shelf to shelf, hoping to find some batteries or, by some stroke of luck, a satellite phone. However, he found something more to his liking. There, in the middle of one of the shelves, was a collection of H-mangas and magazines. With his pulse quickening and blood running down his nose and to his lower region, he browsed through such illustrious titles as _My Sensei is an Amateur Porn Star _and_ My Neighbor Can't Be This Hot of a MILF?!_ He also found a copy of _Bikini Island_, a magazine similar to _Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition_ but without the beached whales that were prevalent in its American counterpart. Each page featured plenty of nudity because with the women already half naked, why not take it to its logical conclusion?

"All right! It's got the calendar special!" he said elated, stashing his newly-discovered collection into his backpack. Just as he was going to reach for more tittles from the shelf, a hand popped out from it. Kohta screamed, falling back, with the hand trying to pull him in, as the entire shelf fell over, reveling a zombie hiding behind it.

Takashi turned around, as he heard Kohta's scream echoed throughout the warehouse. More screams could be heard, and it was at that moment he pulled out his gun and ran in the direction they were coming from. With adrenaline rushing through his veins, Takashi turned a corner, just as gun shots rang out.

Kohta was leaning on one of the shelves, trying to catch his breath. Lying next to him, was his would-be aggressor with a couple of bullet holes riddled on his chest.

"GET DOWN!"

Kohta immediately hit the floor, as Takashi fired three rapid shots, each one hitting three different zombies that were standing a couple of feet away from them. The bodies dropped to the floor like bags of cement.

"What's going on―AAHH!" Rei screamed, as she encountered zombies coming out from some of the aisles. She pulled out her Uzi that was hanging from its sling, pressed the grip safety, and began to open fire at them, hitting the entire group. Rei turned around and sprinted to find her friends, leaving the floors splattered with the blood and internal organs of the diseased.

Not too far from Rei's position, Saeko was busy slashing and piercing a couple of newly-awaken guests of her own, "Saya, go find Takashi! We have to get out of here!" she warned her friend who was standing at the end of the aisle. Saya nodded and ran off to find Takashi.

By this time, the rest of the group was well aware of the situation currently unfolding and were rushing to be at Takashi's side.

"Komuro-kun!" screamed Shizuka-sensei, her massive breasts jiggling violently as she ran, with two zombies following her. Her treasure throve of alcohol and sweets she was carrying was weighing her down, causing her to slow down.

**SMACK!**

Kyoko-sensei swung her barbed-wire baseball bat to break off the jaw of one of the assailants. She then turned to the other one and delivered a skull-breaking blow, causing it to fall to the ground with its spilled brain matter.

"Thank you, Kyoko-san," gasped Shizuka, trying to catch her breath.

Kyoko eyed the heavy bag she was carrying, "Take off your bag and leave it. We have to find the others and get out of here. This place is crawling with them and you can't possibly run with something this heavy."

"No, I can't!" Shizuka said, hugging the bag protectively, "I can't leave these things behind."

"Your life or your things? Which one are you going to choose?" Kyoko warned her.

"Fine," Shizuka grumbled, dropping the bag and leaving it on the floor, "Let's go find the others."

The two women ran off in search of the rest of the group, with Shizuka glancing over her shoulder at her beloved prize for one last time. Her eyes were filled with sadness at how close she came to tasting the nectars of the gods yet again.

At the other end of the warehouse, Takashi and Kohta were busy dropping zombies left and right. The two of them moved in unison, with Takashi covering the 9 o'clock position, while Kohta took care of the 3 o' clock. They were in the zone, as Takashi performed a tactical reload while Kohta provided cover fire with his trusty MAC-10, careful not to run through the entire magazine as it was easy to do with this type of gun. All those hours of playing _Modern Warfare _and other first-person shooter games were paying off. But unlike the video games, this was real life and there was no escape button, multiple lives, health kits to collect, or respawning. Once you were out, you were out for good. There was no room for error, and these guys were performing flawlessly. With the last one of _them _lying on the floor with a bullet hole through its head, Takashi spotted Saya and Rei running towards him.

"Where's everyone else?" he asked the girls.

"Here we are, Komuro-kun!" called out Shizuka, running towards them with Kyoko-sensei alongside her.

"Saeko said we need to get out of here," Saya informed them.

"Where is she?!"

"A couple of aisles down, to the left," Saya pointed, "She was slashing a group of _them_ when I saw her."

"Let's go Takashi!" exclaimed Kohta.

"What about us? What should we do?" asked Kyoko-sensei.

"Sensei, take the rest of the group and go outside. Don't go into the grass field, just stay in the parking lot. And if we don't come out after fifteen minutes, leave with everyone else as fast as you can. Understood?" Takashi instructed her.

Kyoko-sensei nodded.

"I'm coming with you," Saya said determinedly.

"And me too," Rei responded.

"No! All of you have to leave! We can't take any chances," Takashi replied furiously.

"Komuro-kun!" Shizuka screamed, her face petrified with fear, pointing behind him.

He turned around to see more zombies marching towards them, their mouths wide opened, screeching aggressively. Takashi loaded a new magazine into his pistol and looked at his friend. Kohta nodded and grinned. It was go time for them. The duo ran into the zombies, opening fire to pass through, hoping they would find their friend alive and unharmed.

"Wait for me!" Rei pleaded with them, just as Kyoko-sensei grabbed her by the arm before she could take another step.

"You heard him," sensei said sternly, "You're coming with us!"

"No, I don't want to!" she squirmed, trying to break away from her grasp. Shizuka-sensei helped Kyoko-sensei in restraining her, as they made their way to the nearest exit door.

* * *

So, what's the plan, Takashi?" Kohta asked, as they were running, leaving behind a trail of dead zombie bodies on the floor.

"Find Saeko, rejoin with the rest of the group, and get out of this city. Hopefully, the next place isn't as infested as this one," said Takashi, shooting another zombie that was hiding behind a conveyor belt.

They ran across stacks of flattened cardboard boxes, when Takashi bumped into someone coming out from the corner.

"Saya! What are you doing here? I told you―"

"Shut up! I couldn't leave you two idiots by yourselves. You need a genius like me in these types of situations," she shot back.

"Fine, stay close and don't do anything stupid."

"I can take care of myself, thank you very much," she said, sticking her tongue out.

The three of them continued to run and came across a staircase leading to an elevated platform overlooking the entire warehouse floor. They walked up the stairs and started surveying the area below them.

"Over there, Takashi!" pointed Saya.

Out in the distance, pinned between two conveyor belts and a giant robotic arm behind her, Saeko was in a death match against a pack of eleven zombies. They were trying to get near her, but each time they tried to grab her, she would cut them off with her sword. But the process was proving to be exhausting for Saeko, as each zombie she killed only brought out two more reinforcements from nearby. She didn't know how long she could hold on before one of them would succeed and turned her into one of _them_.

"SAEKO!" Takashi called out.

She looked up from her fight, surprised and relieved to see him, but frightened, nevertheless. She slashed three other zombies that were getting too close to her, the _katana _slicing cleanly across their torsos, like a sushi knife cutting through tuna.

"I don't think I can get a clear shot from here, not with this gun, at least," declared Kohta, looking at his target through his gun's sight.

"We need to create a distraction," suggested Saya.

"But how?" asked Takashi. He knew they had to think of something fast, he didn't know how long Saeko could last at this rate.

Kohta snapped his fingers, and smiled, "I got it! I'll be right back," he ran down the stairs and into the labyrinth of yellow-colored aisles.

"What's that fat ass up to now? He's going to get all of us killed," remarked an irritated Saya.

Kohta grabbed various supplies off the shelves, and by mixing some common household cleaners, he MacGyvered a couple of IEDs. He then returned to his friends perched on the platform and told them his plan.

"We throw a couple of these," he showed them a couple of steel thermos bottles with lighters and stopwatches attached to them, "blown them up, and Saeko can finally escape."

Oh, yeah?" Saya scoffed," What happens if the blast kills her, idiot? Did you think that through?"

"It won't kill her because she can hide behind the robot. It's strong enough to resist a blast like this one," Kohta responded confidently, "This is our only chance. We don't have any other choice."

"What do you think, Takashi?" Saya looked at him, worriedly.

"Let's do it," Takashi nodded, "and let's hope this work."

"Saeko, can you take cover behind the robot?" Saya yelled out to her.

"Yes, why? What are you guys planning to do?" she responded, while piercing a zombie and kicking another one in the chest, causing it to fall back.

"You'll find out soon. Just take cover and close your eyes, alright?" said Takashi.

Saeko immediately hid behind the robot and crunched down to the floor, her heart pounding wildly with trepidation and anticipation. She held her _katana _close to her, hoping whatever her friends were about to do, would succeed. Kohta threw one of the steel bottles and it rolled next to the foot of one of the zombies. Dumbfounded by it, the zombie looked at the bottle, while the rest of _them _stood there watching, as well.

**_BOOOOOOOOOMMM!_**

The blast took out the entire group of zombies, their body parts splattering everywhere. Their organs oozing on the conveyer belts and covering the floor in crimson liquid, leaving a nauseating stench.

"YEAH!" shouted Kohta, pumping his fist triumphantly.

"Yes!" both Saya and Takashi cheered, slapping each other high-fives.

Saeko got up and ran away from her hiding place. She was able to escape to a more secure location. The blast however proved to be counterproductive, as more zombies came out from various parts of the warehouse.

"Nice going, moron. Now you woke up the entire place," Saya nervously remarked. "And judging by their uniforms, it's the entire Amazon warehouse workforce."

"Saeko, get out of here. Just run straight ahead, you got a clear path. The rest of the group is waiting for you outside. We'll meet you there. Hurry!" Takashi shouted from the staircase. She did what she was told and sprinted towards the exit door. The rest of them ran down the platform, their weapons drawn and ready for the fight of their lives. The zombies were heading there way, and it wouldn't be long before they were surrounded.

"Kohta, we're you going?!" shouted Takashi, seeing him run in the opposite direction.

"I'm going to distract them. There's no way the three of us can take all of them."

"You can't do this by yourself, you moron!" Saya protested.

"Yes, I can. Trust me you guys, I got a plan. Just run outside and I'll meet you there," Kohta said, running towards the conveyor belts.

"Saya, let's go!" called Takashi.

"Idiot," mumbled Saya, as she turned around and joined Takashi, racing down the middle of the warehouse floor.

Kohta pulled out his crowbar from his backpack and began to hit the shelves as he ran, the loud noise echoed throughout the building. "Hey! Over here!" he shouted, catching the attention of the zombies. They turned around and began following him, providing Takashi and Saya with the perfect diversion for them escape.

"Where's Kohta?" asked Shizuka-sensei, upon meeting the pair in the parking lot.

"He's still inside," responded Takashi.

"Why did you leave him behind?!"

"He says he has a plan, sensei. Or at least, let's hope he does," Saya added.

Meanwhile, Kohta reached one of the conveyor belts and punched the start button. Immediately, the system started up and began to move. He then put one of the steel bottles on top of the conveyor belt going one way, while he put another one going in the opposite direction. With the first part of his plan completed, he moved to the next phase, bolting towards the center of the building and placing the remaining IEDs at the entrance of different aisles. Once finished, he made his escape towards freedom.

Like clockwork, the bombs went off, each one in different areas of the building, taking out dozens of zombies with them. Takashi and the rest of the group waiting outside, watched as one of the explosions ripped open part of the roof.

"KOHTA!" they instinctively shouted.

"Is he going to be ok? asked a terrified Kyoko-sensei.

"He'll be alright. I know he can make it," Takashi answered. Turning his attention towards the building, he said, "Come on, man. You can do it."

With only a few feet away, Kohta could see the sunlight coming through the open door. He ran as fast as he ever did in his entire life, faster than all those other times at the annual fitness challenge held during PE class. _Almost there, _he thought, feeling the cool air of the world of the living.

A pair of zombies popped out from a stack of pallets, screeching wildly. Kohta quickly shot them, blowing off their heads. He pointed at them with a sly smile, "Fulfilled, motherf―"

**_BBBBBBOOOOOOOOOMMMM!_**

_"__AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" s_creamed Kohta, as a huge fireball erupted, sending him flying into the air. Unfortunately, he didn't see the flammable products in some of the aisles where he had left his explosives. As a result, the blast radius proved to be larger than anticipated.

"KOHTA!" the group yelled. They watched in horror as he crashed head first into the windshield of one of the cars in the parking lot. They rushed towards him, hoping that by some miracle, he would be alright.

"Hang in there, Kohta!" shouted Takashi, being the first one to reach the scene. He used the muzzle of his gun to break the driver's window and open the door. He jumped right into the seat and looked at his friend, lying unconscious on the backseat, his face covered in blood and his back badly burned.

"I'm here, Kohta. We'll get you out, just hang in there, bro," Takashi pleaded with him.

The rest of the group arrived, with Shizuka-sensei making her way to examine Kohta. Takashi opened the passenger door so she would have better access to treating his friend, while the rest of them crowed around the car, hoping Kohta had only minor injuries and would soon be back in action in no time.

"Is he gonna be okay, sensei?" Takashi asked panicking, the second time he had felt this way since the world had changed.

Shizuka-sensei pressed her two fingers on Kohta's neck to feel his pulse. Her lips began to quiver and a tear rolled town her cheek, "He's dead," she answered, with a shaking voice.

"No! That's can't be! Sensei, that's not true. Tell me we can still help him," he begged her.

"I'm sorry, Komuro-kun," she sobbed, "But he's dead and there's nothing we can do."

Takashi ran out of the car and let out a guttural scream.

"DAMM IT!" he yelled, falling down to his knees. He pounded the asphalt with his hand before he broke down in tears.

Having heard the news, the rest of the group burst into tears, as the fire behind them engulfed the entire building and pages of H-mangas and magazines rained on the parking lot.


	3. Detour

They left Kohta in the backseat of the car. Takashi stuck a rag down the car's fuel filler pipe, letting it stick out so as to act as a fuse. He took out a cigarette lighter from his pocket and began lighting up the rag. It quickly caught on fire and he sprinted away back to where the group was waiting for him. From a safe distance, Takashi made it just in time to watch with the rest of the team as the car exploded. Flames engulfed it until only a charred metal skeleton remained, with black smoke rising to the sky and the smell of burnt rubber, gasoline, and plastic filling the air. While behind them, the warehouse fire showed no signs of abating. The group stood there, in shock, looking at the pyre. The whole thing seemed so surreal. Once the realization hit them that their friend was gone, they began to cry. Rei was the first one to start, with Saya following, trying to fight back tears, but failing. Next, came Kyoko and Shizuka-sensei who wailed uncontrollably. As the only adults present, it was surprising to see them unable to control their emotions, since they had been pillars of support for their students during this entire ordeal. Even Saeko, who was the stoic one of the bunch, managed to show some emotions for once. Soon, everybody was crying. After a few minutes of mourning, and with a tear rolling down his cheek, Takashi saluted Kohta, with the rest of the group following his lead. And with that, the funeral service came to a conclusion and the team somberly marched out of the parking lot and headed to another city. It was now half past two o' clock in the afternoon.

After a long walk, they made it to the outskirts of Shinkawa where Takashi conducted a supply check. The group immediately emptied their bags for inspection, placing everything into one neat pile. Takashi squatted to take a closer look at what the team had collected from their warehouse raid. In front of him, laid an array of items in various shapes and sizes, their colorful packaging reminding him of a more peaceful and prosperous time were the only thing he had to worry about was school, girls, and what video game to purchase for the month. But for now, these items would help determine the team's survival.

"So," he said, standing up after finishing checking the supplies, "we have some canned soup that should last us a week, maybe a week and a half, if we're lucky. Some tampons, protein bars, moisturizing cream, and toilet paper."

"For ammunitions, we have 65 rounds of 9mm, which Rei, Saya, and me have to share, and 30 rounds of .38's for Shizuka-sensei. Add a pack of AA batteries and water bottles to our stash, and this is what we have so far," said Takashi. "Not what I was hoping for," he said, stepping back and looking down at the pile, with his arms across his chest.

"I wish we had our old guns," lamented Rei.

"Is not like we had a choice, remember? It could have been a lot worse, and you know it," Takashi said, looking at her seriously.

"Still, they were better than what we have right now."

"How serious is the situation?" asked Kyoko-sensei.

"How about we look for a safe place to sleep before nighttime arrives," Saya interrupted, tilting her head towards a long shadow cast by a tree on the sidewalk. "It won't be long before this place is pitch dark and _they_ come out to play," she said, sending shivers to the rest of the female team members.

"But we're so far away now," remarked Shizuka-sensei, looking back to a chain of black smoke trailing in the distance. "Don't tell me they're already here?"

"They're everywhere, sensei," answered Saeko. "We won't be safe until every one of them is killed."

"Ok, let's find a place to spend the night first. Then we'll discuss our situation," said Takashi. "Let's move out." With that, the team resumed their walk across the new city.

After walking for a few blocks, the group settled on a three-story building. With Takashi at the front, his Taurus TH9 fully-drawn and ready for action, while Saya was standing behind him with her MAC-10, the team proceeded to enter the building. Slowly, Takashi opened the door and they made their way into the lobby. Looking at the directory hanging on the wall, they could see the building hosted a variety of businesses from a staffing agency to freelance landscaping.

Rei gasped, "That's a lot of rooms!"

"Sssshhh!"

"Sorry."

"Let's start on the first floor. We'll go to each office and work our way upstairs," whispered Takashi.

"Right," the team answered.

Takashi signaled them to follow him, and they ran to the office door of a public accountant. Once they reached it, they pressed together into a single line against the wall, their pulses racing in apprehension to what lay on the other side.

"Three, two, one," Takashi counted down with his raised hand, as he kicked the door open, and the team stormed the room. Saya and he covered the main room, while Saeko and Rei moved to the file cabinet room; Shizuka and Kyoko-sensei were in charge of the supply closet.

"Clear!" shouted Saya.

"Clear!" yelled Saeko, from the other room.

"All clear!" answered Shizuka-sensei from her position.

And so they went from office to office, clearing them and hoping they wouldn't find any unexpected guests. Each time more nerve-racking than the last. By the time they had finished, half an hour had passed.

Taking refuge on the third floor inside the offices of a freelance engineering company and a logistic solutions business, the team settled into their new home. Takashi called in a group meeting. Sitting down on the floor, they listened to his status report. "Our situation is this: we're running out of ammunition and we don't have enough food to keep on traveling across the country," he said, standing in front of them.

"So, what else is new?" asked Rei sarcastically. "Isn't that a problem we have every week?"

"It's been a month now, are we even close to reaching that safe zone you talked about last time?" inquired Kyoko-sensei. "Where are we anyways?"

"Here," said Saya, taking out her map and pointing to a small dot on it, "Watsuwa. And we need to reach Hanagatsu," she said, tracing a long line with her index finger from their current location to their final destination, "Which is here. That's our safe zone. At least, we hope it still is."

"How far away are we from it?" Saeko asked.

"By foot, we're looking at a couple of weeks―assuming we're well-fed and have plenty of supplies, and don't encounter any more detours," answered Saya. "Otherwise, it could take us longer. And again, we have to assume this place is still safe and hasn't been taken over by _them_."

Shizuka-sensei sighed, "It would be nice to finally find a car."

"Yeah, but we keep on finding pieces of junk instead," chuckled Rei.

"What do you propose, Komuro-kun?" inquired Kyoko-sensei. "We can't obviously stay here and we can't keep on running away from _them_ forever, so what then?"

"We'll search for supplies tomorrow morning and use them to go as far as they take us," responded Takashi.

"And when we run out of them, then what? We starve to death? Let those monsters eat us, huh?" Rei glared at him.

"We find food and we keep on moving until we reach the safe zone. That's the plan. Obviously, it's easier said than done, but we can't stay in one place for too long. We always have to be on the move," declared Takashi.

"What about Okinawa like what that police officer said?" Rei asked excitedly, "We can―"

"Okinawa is closed to people from the mainland. We can't get there even if we wanted, unless you want to get shot by US soldiers."

"What if the safe zone is no longer safe, do you have an alternative place?" questioned Kyoko-sensei.

"We'll find another place. There's must be a city or town that hasn't fallen to _them_. Maybe we might even find other survivors."

The rest of the group looked at one another, their mood suddenly changed. The thought of finding other people filled them with hope.

Shizuka-sensei turned to Saya, "Is this even possible?"

"I don't know, sensei. There are too many variables to calculate to arrive at a survival rate," she said, pushing back her glasses. "Whatever the case may be, Takashi is right: if we stay here and run out of food, we're not going to survive."

The team sat there is silence, thinking about what Saya had just said. They had faced plenty of difficult situations before, some even more dire than their current predicament, and yet they always managed to come out victorious. But after today's events, they had to face the fact―their luck had run out. For now, Saya, Rei, Saeko, and Takashi, would have to resigned themselves to the cruel reality that it may take some time―probably a year or more―before they would finally be reunited with their respective families. Assuming they were still alive, that is.

"We're moving out tomorrow, right after we go searching for supplies. We're not staying here and becoming live bait for these suckers," Takashi said determinedly.

The team nodded in agreement. Somehow, they felt reinvigorated. Whatever the threat, they weren't going to go down without a fight.

"Let's open those soup cans. I'm starving already!" Rei complained, as she stood up.

"So am I!" giggled Shizuka-sensei.

"I'll go check the office's breakroom. Maybe they have running water and a working microwave," Kyoko-sensei added, making her way to the other room.

The rest of the group nodded and smiled, as they took out the cans of soup from their backpacks. After finishing their meal, they unfurled their sleeping bags on the carpet floor and got ready to go to sleep. The thought of their fallen friend weighted heavily on their minds. Despite this, they knew they had to give it their all tomorrow and not let Kohta's death be in vain. With this in mind, they went to sleep.

* * *

The following morning after breakfast, the group went outside and walked through the city, looking for supplies. They spotted a small 7-Eleven store and went in. Once inside, they could see the place had been ransacked, with shattered glass everywhere, items scattered throughout the floor, and overturned shelves. The group searched through the mess, hoping to find food or anything useful for them to take on their trip. Alcohol and cigarettes were the first items the team noticed were missing, much to the adults' disappointment.

Shizuka walked through one of the aisles, humming to herself as she grabbed a box of condoms from one of the shelves, the last one that was left and one of the few items that remained from the looting.

"Sensei, you're not really thinking of getting that, are you?"

She turned around to see Saya standing with clenched fists on her hips and a look of disapproval on her face.

"You just have to be ready for anything. You never know when you might need one," she answered, giggling as she put the box inside her bag.

"I-I…" Saya stuttered, too embarrassed to say anything else. She never expected for Sensei to be this shameless, but then again, they were living through a pandemic and this event had changed people dramatically. And not always for the better.

"Find anything?" called out Takashi, from the next aisle.

"Nothing. Just spoiled food," answered Saeko, from behind the food counter at the front.

"Well this was a waste of time," scoffed Rei, kicking a bottle of diarrhea medication into the glass door of a refrigerator, smashing it upon impact.

"Oops,"

Turning to Takashi, her arms across her breasts, Kyoko-sensei sighed, "What do we do know, Komuro-kun?"

"We continue searching. There must be a place that has some supplies left. Let's go, everybody."

The group filed out of the store and proceeded to walk down the street until they made a left turn at an intersection. After a couple of blocks, they started to notice their surroundings had changed into a residential area.

They walked through the narrow streets of the neighborhood, the power lines crisscrossing above them, like a spider's web, as they noticed the small shops along the way. Unlike Shinkawa, which had large warehouses and factories of major companies, this part of the city was primarily composed of small family businesses. It was not uncommon to see a two-story house with a tool and die shop on the first floor, and the living quarters on the second. These shops dealt either in traditional crafts, such as lacquering and blacksmithing, or in manufacturing components for cars and satellites. While most of the buildings were made from wood, others were built from concrete and steel. There was a crop of them that was built in the modern style: box-shaped, ugly, and depressive to look at. In other words, a representation of the current trend that plagued modern architecture. Rather than making something that would inspire and last for generations, construction companies built abominations that would become annoying eyesores for the people living in the neighborhood. In the distance, birds could be heard singing, bringing some semblance of normalcy to calm the team's nerves.

"Well, everything seems fine, so far," Saya observed.

"Don't let your guard down," Takashi answered, his eyes scanning the buildings for any sudden movements coming from the windows.

Rei ran up to the front to join them, much to Saya's disapproval.

"You're supposed to be guarding the rear," she said, glaring at her.

"I'm bored. I wanna be with you guys."

"More like you want to be with Takashi," Saya fired back, looking at her suspiciously.

"Hmph!" Rei flipped her hair and ignored her, as she continued walking alongside Takashi.

They continued to walk through the streets, vigilant to any danger. It was already past noon with the sun shining brightly and a cool, gentle breeze sweeping in.

"This is sooo boring," Rei complained, rolling her eyes.

"Then go cover the rear like you're supposed to," snapped Saya, giving her a dirty look.

Rei quickly gasped and turned pale. The group stopped walking and froze, their hearts pounding wildly, adrenaline rushing through their bodies, as they looked out into the distance. Twenty feet from where they stood, a zombie appeared from an alleyway corner. It stood there for a few seconds, its head moving abnormally as it tried to figure out where the voices were coming. Rei started trembling, pressing the Uzi close to her hip, as the zombie made an erratic move and headed towards them. She panicked and opened fire, missing it completely and hitting a pair of liquid propane gas tanks that were sitting outside a business. A huge fireball erupted, throwing back the group a few feet.

_"__AAAAHHH! AAAHH! AAAHHHH! Takashi, I'm hurt!" _screamed Rei, her face covered with blood.

"Shut up!" said Saya, splashing her with a bottle of water, washing away the blood off her face.

"Saya, what the hell did you do?! She's injured!" yelled Takashi.

"No, she's not! Is just the blood from the zombie, not hers. Seriously, you're so easily fooled," Saya said, shaking her head at him.

"Anyone hurt?" Takashi asked, looking around.

"No, I'm fine," Kyoko-sensei answered, getting up and dusting herself off.

"I'm fine, Komuro-kun," added Shizuka-sensei.

"So am I," responded Saeko, rubbing her head and opening her mouth repeatedly to pop her ears, "But we better leave this area. If we found one―" she stopped and immediately assumed a fighting stance. The rest of the group turned around and raised their weapons. Strange noises could be heard coming from the houses and businesses; they formed a circle and stood there, petrified. Kyoko-sensei trembled, gripping her barbed-wire covered bat, while Takashi looked around, hoping to catch a glimpse of the threat and take immediate action before it was too late. It was at that moment, they saw _them _coming out_. _

From the buildings, stepped out hundreds of zombies. Young and old, men and women, screeching incessantly and shuffling towards them.

"Run!" shouted Takashi, immediately shooting a couple of them that were coming near them. The group charged across the street, while more of the walking corpses were following closely behind.

**_RATAAA RATTTAA RATTRAA RATAAA_**

Rei went with her Uzi, as she shot a dozen of them, clearing the way for the group to continue their escape and leaving a trail of splattered bodies on the pavement. Even with this show of force, it did not deter the zombies from continuing their attack.

"This way!" yelled Takashi, leading them into a shop specializing in electronic parts for automobiles. He kicked the main door open, and they rushed inside, running across the room until they reached the entrance of the emergency exit stairway. They yanked the door open and ran all the way to the rooftop.

Once they reached the top, they slammed the door shut. The terrifying screeching could still be heard all the way up, sending shivers to the group.

"More of them are heading this way! We have to get out here," said Saeko, looking down at the commotion on the street below.

"What do we do now?!" panicked Rei.

"Over there! See? We jump to the house next door and continue running across the rooftops until we find an empty street that doesn't have _them_. It's our only chance to survive," Takashi answered.

"Are you nuts?! We can't jump all the way there! It's too far way."

"Yes, we can!" he ran to the end of the rooftop and looked down to find an alleyway below, prompting him to calculate the gap between the two buildings. Both were the same height, so that wouldn't be a problem, and the distance between them was manageable. It was only a matter of courage that was need to accomplish this feat. Takashi only hoped his friends had plenty of it ― they were going to need it.

"We can do it! All we have to do is jump!"

**_CLANK CLANK CLANK_**

The door burst opened and dozens of zombies came pouring in; Saya and Rei immediately opened fire on them, the corpses falling backwards like dominoes until they piled up at the bottom of the stairway. Kyoko-sensei slammed the door shut, while the rest of the group tried to catch their breaths, stunned at such a close call.

"JUST DO IT!" shouted Takashi to the team, "We don't have time!"

Hearing this, Saeko walked to the opposite end of the building and sprinted towards Takashi. When she reached the end, she jumped, flying across the gap with the grace of an Olympic hurdler and landing on the tile roof of a three-story family home.

"Are you ok?" Takashi called out to her.

"Yes!" she said, standing up and flashing a thumbs up.

Takashi smiled and let out a sigh of relief. He then turned to the rest of the group, "You can do it! Let's go!"

Rei nodded and followed Saeko's lead. She tightly pulled her gun sling before she prepared for her run. Once she was ready, she bolted across the rooftop and jumped, landing safely on the other side where Saeko was waiting to help her up.

Next came Kyoko-sensei, and then followed by Shizuoka-sensei. Both of the teachers screamed as they made their jumps, reminding the girls of the times when they took their respective parents on roller coaster rides and how terrified they became on the way down.

"Saya, is your turn!" shouted Saeko from across the other side.

"Ok, I'm going," she said, pushing her glasses back and taking deep breaths as she walked backwards to get into a sprinting position.

The door was thrown wide open again, as zombies lunged at Saya, causing her to scream helplessly, but not before being met by a hail of bullets piercing their skulls. Takashi rushed over to help her, pointing his gun―smoke coming out from it― at the metal door.

"Saya! Are you all right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Takashi went inside the doorway to investigate and heard the zombies still making their way up the stairway. He slammed the door shut and dragged the corpses that were outside, mounting them on top of each other next to the entrance to form a barricade.

"You better go, Saya. I don't know how long this will hold," said Takashi over his shoulder while still aiming at the door.

Saya nodded and stepped back a few feet to get a good distance for her takeoff. She took a deep breath, tightly adjusted her gun sling, and ran. Taking long strides, she quickly reached the end of the building, but just as she was about to jump across the alleyway, she slipped off the edge, causing her to crash into an electrical transformer that was next to the house.

_"__AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" _she screamed, as the group watched in horror as she was electrocuted beyond recognition. Gun fire erupted, bullets whizzing past her friends, as they laid flat on the roof, after Saya's MAC-10 and her ammunition caught on fire.

"NOOOOOO!" Takashi screamed in agony, watching her body be consumed by the blaze, the smell of burnt flesh filling the air. The rest of the group hysterically cried out, unable to rescue their friend.

The transformer overloaded, causing it to explode and come crashing down, pulling alongside it Saya's charred body to the street below. The power lines were snapped and downed, with some of them landing on a few houses that immediately caught on fire.

"Takashi! Watch out!" yelled Saeko, signaling him to look behind.

Takashi turned around to see his barricade about to be breached, "Everybody, run! I'll be right behind you! GO!" he commanded.

The team stood up and made a run for it, just as the fire started to reach their house. Across the street, two houses were already fully ablaze, the flames already approaching another building and ready to devour it.

"TAKASHI!" cried out Rei, looking back while the rest of the group pulled her in, as they made their escape across the rooftop, jumping from one building to the next.

Takashi put his gun into his pocket and sprinted across the rooftop, jumping across the alleyway, and landing onto the house next door. While behind him, the zombies managed to break through the door and barrier, but not before the fire spread to the building, effectively trapping them. The only thing they could do was shriek while they waited for their final demise via fire.

The flames quickly engulfed the entire neighborhood, faster than a cigarette spark on dead brush during summertime, consuming everything in its path and becoming its own threat to the group. The team rushed across the rooftops, with Takashi not far behind, until they reached the end of the block. Carefully, they climbed down into one of the house's balcony where they broke inside through a bedroom window and made their way downstairs and into the street. Feeling the heat from the fire, even when it was a block away, they continued to run. A mile later, the group reached the main road where they collapsed onto the pavement, breaking down in tears.

Takashi was on his knees, crying. He desperately shouted Saya's name, but to no avail. That's when the realization she was dead hit him and tore him apart. The rest of the group were inconsolable as well. Rei and Kyoko-sensei hugged each other, an endless stream of tears flowing down their eyes, while Saeko rocked herself back and forth, unable to process what had happened, until she let out a guttural scream and broke down in tears.

Meanwhile, Shizuka-sensei sat by herself, crying uncontrollably, when she glanced out into the distance. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide in shock and she ran up the street. She embraced a strange figure that was standing at the next block and it tried to console her. The group looked on, wondering who this person was. When Shizuka had started calming down, they began walking back to where Takashi and his friends stood.

"Rika Minami, Tokonosu Police: Special Assault Team," she said with a bow. "Nice to finally meet all of you."


End file.
